A Russian fighter jet flew “dangerously close” to a U.S. hunter-killer drone over Syria on Sunday and released a flare causing severe damage to the drone’s propeller, the U.S. Air Force said Tuesday.
At 12.23 a.m. ET on Sunday the Russian plane came within a few feet of the MQ-9 Reaper drone, which was on a “defeat-ISIS” mission, said Air Force Lt. Gen. Alex Grynkewich, the commander of the Ninth Air Force and the Combined Forces Air Component for U.S. Central Command.
“The Russian fighter’s blatant disregard for flight safety detracts from our mission to ensure the enduring defeat of ISIS,” he said, referring to the Islamic State terrorist group.
“We call upon the Russian forces in Syria to put an immediate end to this reckless, unprovoked, and unprofessional behavior.”
The Russian Defense Ministry did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
It is at least the third such incident this month, following similar near-collisions between Russian jets and U.S. drones over Syria on July 5 and July 6.
The Air Force released video that it said showed the Russian jet flying close to the drone and releasing a flare.
The crew operating the MQ-9 drone was able to fly it to its home base, he added. The drone has a wingspan of 66 feet and costs $56.5 million at 2011 prices, according to the Air Force website. It can carry Hellfire missiles and precision-guided bombs.
Russia has used its air power to support the regime of Bashar al-Assad during Syria’s long civil war, with deadly airstrikes on rebel-held territory.
In March, Grynkewich told NBC News that armed Russian jets were flying over U.S. positions in Syria nearly every day.
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